When the Waves Seem Too High

When my husband and I visited the beautiful island of Kauai, we arrived at our resort at night. We could tell our building was near the ocean, but didn’t realize until the next morning that our room was only steps away from the beach. We woke up to a spectacular sunrise–so spectacular that we decided that we would get up every morning to watch the world awake. (Quite an undertaking for this non-morning person!)

Every morning we oohed and aahed at the pinks, blues, and purple colors in the awakening sky. We saw the golden ball of the sun peek out from the gray sea.

And we noticed something else–a small boat. Every morning right before the sun made its grand entrance, a small watercraft left the river-harbor and went bravely into the ocean. We wondered aloud why this boat went out every day at the same time. Was it a morning ritual of the boat owners? Or did the boat go out on official business?

One morning the waves were quite high. It seemed a storm was brewing. But the little boat still went out in the strengthening surf. It bounced along in the waves, but it didn’t turn back.

This morning I remembered that small boat when I read the story of Peter walking on the waves.

 Then Peter called to him, “Lord, if it’s really you, tell me to come to you, walking on the water.” “Yes, come,” Jesus said. So Peter went over the side of the boat and walked on the water toward Jesus. But when he saw the strong wind and the waves, he was terrified and began to sink. “Save me, Lord!” he shouted. Jesus immediately reached out and grabbed him. “You have so little faith,” Jesus said. “Why did you doubt me?”

Matthew 14:28-31

You see, I’m a lot like Peter. I want to exhibit great faith. When Jesus says, “Come!” I want to respond wholeheartedly.

I want to obey Christ’s call on my life. But it’s funny how the waves always look a lot smaller before I take that first step. Before I start the project, I’m confident I can do it.

And because God has called me to it, I expect everything to be smooth sailing. I don’t expect turbulent water.

But so often everything looks scarier after I’ve taken that first step and I want to give up. The waves look too high and I begin to sink. I think I haven’t heard God’s call correctly and I start to lose faith.

Fortunately Jesus reaches out His hand and pulls me to my feet. He explains that just because He has called me to take those first steps that they’ll be easy. That even when I’m walking in obedience, the waves might be rough. That things may very well look more frightening when I’ve stepped out in faith than they did from my comfort zone.

Jesus assures me that even when I think I’ve walked into an impossible situation, that He is there with me. He will hold onto my hand.

Like Peter he asks me to trust Him. Like the little boat in Kauai, He asks me to keep going despite the waves.

Question: What do you do when the waves in your life seem a bit too scary?